Americans don't worry much about British, Dutch, or Canadian ownership. Why are they bothered by the Japanese?

Experts suspect there is a component of racism at work here. When the new buyers look European, there's little concern. When their complexions have color, when their backgrounds are not Judeo-Christian, and when their histories have been in conflict with the US - it's another story.

Will they understand the American way? Will they be normal employers? Will foreign owners somehow undermine US foreign policy?

``There's a lot of huffing and puffing when it comes to non-Anglos,'' says Earl Fry, a Brigham Young University professor who has studied foreign investment for 10 years. ``The Japanese are very sensitive to this.''